A Russian military court sentenced former state television host Farida Kurbangaleeva to eight years in prison in absentia for disseminating “false information” about the military and “justifying terrorism,” as reported by the independent news outlet Mediazona.
The charges against Kurbangaleeva were initiated following her May 2024 interview with a member of the Free Russia Legion, a group of anti-Kremlin Russians engaged in combat for Ukraine, which Moscow has classified as a terrorist organization. She also faced accusations related to several posts made on her anti-war Telegram channel.
Alexei Baranovsky, the Free Russia Legion soldier she interviewed, was also sentenced to six years in absentia, according to Mediazona’s report on Friday.
Currently residing in the Czech Republic, Kurbangaleeva was added to Russia’s wanted list in June 2024, and the Prosecutor General’s Office filed for her extradition in February.
Kurbangaleeva began her journalism journey in 1998 in Kazan. She hosted the Vesti news program on the state-owned Rossiya-1 channel from 2007 to 2014 before resigning in response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the onset of conflict in eastern Ukraine.
Subsequently, she worked for Current Time, a Prague-based broadcaster that’s a joint venture of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. She currently collaborates with the exiled news organization Govorit NeMoskva and operates her own YouTube channel.
In a statement to The Moscow Times, Kurbangaleeva expressed no surprise regarding the court’s decision on Friday, remarking, “What else can you expect from what we call ‘Putin’s justice?’”
She added, “I have no intention of ceasing my YouTube channel. I took a brief hiatus from my work, but I plan to resume hosting in the upcoming season this fall.”
